Once Upon a Guardian
by WrittenInShadow
Summary: Chesha, the abandoned daughter of the Cheshire Cat, is chosen to be the guardian of the specialist kids in Storybrooke. Blue, the daughter of the Wolf, Red, is her first. The two are as thick as thieves. But when a new child is born into the small town, at the exact moment a shadow threatens everyone in it, a test between Chesha and her wards puts a strain on the bond they share.
1. Chapter 1

As a slight drizzle over-takes the grey morning in Storybrooke, Maine, a woman about twenty-two hops onto the slick roof of the school building. Her natural silver-grey hair bounces in its ponytail as she sits and waits. Within the school, sitting with a very bored expression, is a young girl of sixteen with black hair sporting a single highlight of neon blue. She sighs as her teacher, Ms. Blanchard, drones on and on about non-sense. The woman sitting on the roof evaporates a thick book into her hand and with a practiced wave, surrounds the book with an invisible aura to protect it from the rain. Leaning against part of the roof, she begins to read. About half an hour later, just as the rain stops, the school bell rings and the black haired girl rushes out of her class.

The woman tosses her book into the air where it takes the form of dust and disappears. She hops off the roof, landing gracefully near a tree just as kids begin to file out of the building.

The black haired girl spots the woman and runs over. "Hey, Kitty cat." The woman growls, baring her slightly lengthened canines. "Blue, I told you never to call me that." The woman turns and heads through town with Blue on her heels. "Sorry, Chesha. I just prefer kitty cat over your actual name." Chesha blinks at her with a sly grin. "Shall I call you Sapphire instead of Blue?" Blue glares at the older female, who laughs. Chesha turns a corner and heads for a diner named Granny's. Blue grumbles as she enters the small building and slides into a booth, tugging her homework out of her bag. Chesha slides in across from her and conjures her book back into her hand, flipping it open and reading.

A dark red-headed female strides up to them with a huge smile directed towards Blue. "How was school, sweetheart?" Blue nods absentmindedly as she does her work. "It was okay mom. Just very very boring." Chesha snickers into her book as the redhead smiles. "Want anything?" Chesha glances over her book. "A blueberry mint tea and two pecan muffins to go, please and thank you, Red." Blue looks up from her work at the mention of food. "A steak and a glass of Mountain dew, please." Red jots the order down and, before walking away, plants a big kiss on the center of Blues' forehead. Blue squeaks and rubs her head. Chesha and Red share a laugh. "Need any help?"

Chesha asks when Red walks away. Blue taps her pencil against her textbook, writes something down and then packs it all away. "Nope! All done." Chesha leans back just as Red returns with Chesha's order. "Your steak will be done in a moment, hun." Blue gently lets her head hit the table and fake whines in pain. "I'm sooooo hungry." Chesha snorts and flicks her head. "Patients is a virtue." Blue growls. "F**k virtue. It sucks." Red barks across the diner. "Blue! Language!" The black haired girl flinches. Chesha sits back and sips her tea, continuing her book. Red returns once more with Blue's order and glances back and forth between the cat and her daughter. "Blue, if you promise to be back by ten-thirty, you can go hangout with Chesha." Her grins wide and nods vigorously.

Blue burps after finishing her steak and gulps the last bit of Mt. dew down. "Okay, done! Let's go!" Chesha stands and follows Blue out of the diner. Taking the lead, Chesha heads for Mr. Golds' pawn shop. Blue skips beside her, hair bouncing. Chesha stops at the door to the shop and peeks in. "What are you doing?" Blue asks. Chesha straightens. "Checking to see if anyone's home." She notices Blues' expression. "Did you really think I was going to break in?" Blue shrugs. "Never stopped you before." Chesha sputters in disbelief. "That was before Rumple took me in." She shakes her head. "You should know better than to assume, Blue." Chesha slides by her and heads for the back. Blue follows, head down.

Chesha knocks on the back door. It opens and a man with dark brown yet slightly graying hair and firm hazel eyes peeks out. "Oh! Chesha. And what can I do for you today?" He says in a semi-guarded tone. Chesha holds up the brown paper bag. "The muffins for Belle. She asked me to get her some." Rumple takes the bag, checking its contents. "She isn't lying, stupid." Blue whispers under her breath.

Chesha goes to shush her, but Rumple beats her to it, fixing her with a protective glare. "For your information, young wolf. My wife is pregnant and even the most stupid of reasons to be cautious is safer than nothing." Chesha nods and backs up. "You have a pleasant evening, Rumple. Give my best to Belle and your baby."The strict man nods, retreating back inside the back of the shop.

Chesha drags Blue away. When they are on the other side of the road, She turns on the young girl. "Have you lost your mind, Blue? Just because I have unfixed problems with Mr. Gold doesn't mean I can't fix them." Blue stares at the ground, a slight whimper in her voice. "He treats you like crap. I was just defending you." Chesha sighs and pulls Blue into a hug. "It has nothing to do with you. And your mother would kill me if you ended up involved." Blue snickers and wipes her eyes. Chesha smiles and begins to walk. "So what happened between you two?" Chesha freezes, startled. Blue catches up to her. The older female blinks at the ground, as if trying to recall the memory, but shakes her head. "Story for another time, I guess." She speedily walks away, leaving Blue to catch up, confused.


	2. Chapter 2

p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" Chesha slips her book back in its spot within the Storybrooke library, having finished it earlier that day. The rainy season had passed and a chill Fall breeze swirling through an open window causes her to shiver. Just as she manages to close it, Rumple walks into the building with a very pregnant Belle waddling behind. "You shouldn't move so much. You heard Dr. Wales." The brown hair man grumbles. Belle shushes him, eyes traveling around the library, pausing on a Chesha-trying-to-sneak-away. "Oh, Chesha!? Have you been keeping the place clean?" Cheshas' grey-blue eyes scan the floor in embarrassment. "Yes. I figured you would appreciate coming back to a clean space." Before Belle can reply, Rumple puffs up. "Are you saying my shop and home aren't clean?" If Cheshas' ears were out, they would have been pinned back in shame. "Sorry! That isn't what I meant." Rumple began to utter a few words under his breath, only to be silenced by a sharp cough from Belle. A cough that sends a chill down Chesha's spine. A cough she's only heard once in her life. With a quickness matching that of a cat, Chesha has Belle sitting in a comfy chair and a fan on her already sweat-beaded face./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" Belle pants as if she had just finished running. Rumple stares at her, a mixture of fear and confusion on his face. Chesha shakes him. "Rumple you need to go get Dr. Wales and fast." Rumple blinks at her. "She's going to be okay, right?" The silver haired female sighs. "For all I know, this could be a false alarm. Still. Better safe than sorry." She pats his shoulder. "Now go!" With that, Rumple takes off in a mad-dash. Chesha kneels beside Belle and is focused on keeping her cool when Belle touches her arm. "Chesha. You're Blue's Guardian, right?" Chesha nods. "Red and Emma asked me to keep an extremely close eye on her when she was just a toddler. Still can't figure out why though." Belle shakes her head. "A mother knows when her child is a certain kind of special. That is why I am asking you to be my child's' Guardian as well." Chesha blinks in shock."W-What!? Why!?" Belle smiles. "Because my daughter is that kind of special." Chesha stares at the pregnant woman, knowing very well that once she agreed, there was no going back. That child's life was in her hands, no matter what. "I'm not making you take this on now. You can think on it." Belle gasps and holds her swollen belly in sudden pain. Easy for you to say. Chesha sighs, shoving the offer to back of her mind just as Dr. Wales and two men with a gurney rush in. Rumple follows, helping them get his wife onto the bed and into the ambulance. Belle nods at Chesha, who just smiles. The men drive towards the hospital with the doctor and Rumple slowly follows./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;"~~~~~~~~~~~~/p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" The silver cat lays in a booth at Granny's, staring at the ceiling while thoughts swirled in her head. Why me? What is the purpose? What can I do with two kids? The face of a blonde female slices into her line-of-sight and Chesha sits up hurriedly. "H-Hey, Emma!" Her voice squeaks. Emma smiles awkwardly. "May I join you?" She nods to the empty space across from the blushing cat. Chesha nods and takes a deep breath. The two stare at each other, then off in different directions. "So.." Emma starts. Chesha swallows hard. The last time they had met like this, they were laughing and talking like teenagers. Then you became a Guardian. Her mind whispers, almost sarcastically. Chesha sighs. "Belle asked me to be her child's Guardian." The cat's voice quakes. Emma just smiles sadly. "She also said you don't have to agree to it right away." The blonde looks away. "A lot easier than when we told you before you didn't have time to think about it." Chesha nods slowly./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;""What do you think I should do?" Emma shakes her head. "Can't help you with that, Chesha." With that, the former sheriff stands and leaves the diner. Chesha groans loudly in frustration, hitting her head on the table. "Yeesh! Rough day?" Red asks, setting down Chesha's blueberry mint tea. The cat smiles at the wolf. "Not unless you can turn back time." Red snickers. "If I could do that, we'd all be back in the Enchanted Forest." Chesha watches as she walks away. "If we were back in the forest, my life would suck more." She whispers. Chesha, no matter how hard she tried, couldn't remember her life in the forest or Wonderland. The memory just wasn't there. The diner bell rings and in runs Blue, with a man in a black trench coat close behind. She sees Chesha and runs over. "Chesha! There's someone here looking for you." The female cat glances up and at the same time, locks eyes with the stranger. A tug at her mind puts her into an instinctive alert. Chesha stands and pushes Blue behind her. Red, having overheard, rushes over. "And how may I help you, sir?" The man, not looking away from Chesha, draws something from his pocket. A pale white card with two words scrawled onto its surface./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" Red reads it once before offering it to Chesha, who looks away for that moment. The words on the card send a chill up her spine and she glares at the man. "How do you know me? Who gave you these words?" The man chuckles lightly. "The same man who gave them to Rumpelstiltskin."/p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;"~~~~~~~~~~~~/p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" Blue tosses her sparkly green ball into the air. It hits the ceiling loudly and bounces off in a different path. The quiet yelling hadn't stopped, even when the man had left. She could hear Chesha pacing back and forth, practically hyperventilating as she yelled unanswered questions into the air. Blue sighs and stares out her attic window at the clock on the library. The setting sun casted a dim glow on it, making it seem creepier than it really was. The yelling seemed to get louder by the second. Blue covers her ears tightly, whimpering into her knees. As if she flipped a switch, the yelling stopped. A moment later, her bedroom door opens. "Sorry.."Chesha says quietly when she walks in. Blue's mother nods. "We didn't mean to upset you. It's just been a long day." The young she-wolf goes to hug her mother and smiles at her Guardian, who smiles back. When she pulls back, Blue looks at Chesha curiously. "So did you say yes to Belles' offer?" The cat snorts at the pups bounce back and shakes her head. "But I should. I mean, I promised to protect kids that are very special." Chesha rubs Blue's head. "And if she's the child of Rumple and Belle, well, at least I can get on his good side with that./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;" Before anyone can even move, Henry runs up the stairs. "Hurry! Belle's having her baby and she calling for you Chesha!" The four of them rush to the hospital. When they get there, a sweating Belle is screaming in pain, while squeezing Rumples' hand. Chesha and Blue knock on the glass. Dr. Wales turns to say something when Belle nods her head. The doctor beacons Chesha in. The cat's blood runs cold. emWhat are you gonna do, Kitty cat? Run! No! You can do this! I'm going to vomit.../em/p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;"Rumple stares in confusion at Chesha, but then turns back to his wife. "Glad you came, Chesha." Belle pants. Suddenly, Chesha's mind silences and her body relaxes. "I'll take your offer." Belle grins while Rumple's eyes widen. "Are you sure?' The woman in labor asks with a hiss of pain. Chesha gives a firm nod and places one hand over her heart while clasping Belle free one in her other. "Belle, I, Chesha Cheshire, take your offer to become your daughter's' Guardian." As if breaking a mirror, a veil over Chesha lifts. Belle screams and Dr. Wales rushes into action./p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;"~~~~~~/p  
p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Roboto, sans-serif;"A half hour later, a small pale baby girl cries into the air, making everyone sigh in relief. Chesha watches as the nurses clean the newborn off and wrap her in a pink blanket. When they offer her to Belle, she nods at Chesha, who stiffens. Dr. Wales hands the baby to her. Chesha stares down at the little girl, warmth enveloping her in waves. "Chesha, say hello to Rose. Your new Ward." Belle sighs then falls asleep. Chesha smiles and sits in a nearby chair. Rose snuggles against Chesha. Blue walks over and stares at the baby. "She's so precious!" The two giggle as the infant yawns. "Indeed she is." Chesha looks up at Blue. "You both are."/p 


End file.
